January 11, 2025 • 53 mins
Discover the secrets to seamless travel and explore the world with confidence as we unravel the rankings of the most punctual airlines and airports for 2024. Salt Lake City Airport has achieved a global standing, while Aeromexico and Saudi Arabian Airlines have set the bar for on-time arrivals. We'll reveal insights into Delta's impressive recovery, and introduce you to United's new seasonal route from Denver to Rome. Get ready to be enchanted by the mysteries of "nocturism," where the allure of stargazing and the Northern Lights beckons night adventurers. Plus, join me as I plan my own escape to the Bahamas, promising a sun-soaked getaway.
The allure of travel continues as we spotlight Europe's renaissance, with Italy, Portugal, and Greece leading the charge for 2024-2025 tours. Learn how Belize is streamlining travel for Americans with a new electronic authorization, making it easier than ever to explore this Central American gem. Disneyland enthusiasts will be thrilled with a new promotion offering a free fourth night at select hotels, and we'll share tips on where to stay for maximum fun. Plus, don't miss out on the exclusive savings on trips to Hawaii, Mexico, and the Caribbean through Delta Vacations, including benefits that make every trip a memorable one.
Setting sail on the high seas, we navigate through the latest cruise deals and ship trends. From exciting itineraries departing from the West Coast to Virgin Voyages' groundbreaking annual cruise pass, there's a voyage for every traveler. Discover how to snap up the best cruise deals and take advantage of enticing offers like airfare and beverage credits with Star Clippers. Before you embark, arm yourself with practical tips on avoiding pickpockets, ensuring your adventures remain thrilling and secure. Join us as we guide you through a world of travel wonders and opportunities that await in 2024 and beyond.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Patrick Wiscombe (00:00):
It is the weekend, which means it's time
for the Inside Travel Talkpodcast and radio show Coming up
.
On today's show, we're going tobe talking about the most
on-time airlines and airports, abase camp in Iceland and tall
ship sailing on Star Clippers.
That's just a little bit ofwhat we'll be talking about this
week on the Inside Travel Talkpodcast and radio show, let's go
(00:22):
.
The Inside Travel Talk podcastand radio show presented by go.
The Inside Travel Talk podcastand radio show presented by
BluePlanetVacations.
com contains travel deals,promotions and offers that may
be time sensitive.
All offers and information wereaccurate when the show aired.
Travel deals and offers changeconstantly and are capacity
controlled and subject to changewithout notice.
Show Voice (00:49):
Capacity controlled and subject to change without
notice.
Explore your world.
It's the Inside Travel Talkpodcast and radio show presented
by BluePlanetVacations.
com.
Call or text the show now801-649-3700, 801-649-3700.
And check out the podcast atInsideTravelTalk.
com.
And now here are your hosts,Patrick Wiscombe and Mark Faldmo
(01:12):
.
Patrick Wiscombe (01:24):
Serving up the world to our radio audience and
podcast listeners around theworld.
You are listening to the InsideTravel Talk podcast and radio
show.
Hello there, my name is PatrickWiscombe alongside Mark Faldmo.
My name is Patrick Wiscombealongside Mark Faldmo Coming up
(01:45):
on this edition of the show.
We'll be talking about the moston-time airlines and airports
setting up base camp in Icelandand we'll be talking about
sailing on Star Clippers.
If you don't know what aclipper ship is, you're going to
want to stay tuned because Markhas some terrific offers for
listeners this week.
Want to stay tuned because Markhas some terrific offers for
(02:08):
listeners this week.
Thank you for taking the timeto stop and listen, and the
entire purpose of our radio showand podcast is to help you plan
and book your next vacation, orjust simply give you ideas of
where you want to vacation next,and we are presented by Mark's
company, blueplanetvacations.
com.
You, my friend, are headed to Iwant to say Bermuda here in.
(02:28):
Is it this upcoming week?
I think you are.
Mark Faldmo (02:31):
Close, I'm going to Bahamas.
I'll start with a, B.
So yeah, going to the Bahamasfor a meeting.
So next week I'll be in Nassau,Bahamas.
Patrick Wiscombe (02:42):
Well, that sounds even more delightful.
Mark Faldmo (02:43):
It'll be a lot warmer there than it is here.
Patrick Wiscombe (02:47):
It has been pretty cold.
Next week's show, which will bethe what the 18th, I think.
Ad Voice (02:52):
So you'll be doing it from Nassau.
Patrick Wiscombe (02:54):
Do you know where you're going to be staying
down there?
Mark Faldmo (02:56):
Yeah, I'll be staying at a Sandals Resort in
Nassau, Bahamas.
I'm looking forward to it.
I've only stayed at a Sandalsresort once, so I'm looking
forward to the second time.
Patrick Wiscombe (03:06):
We'll talk about Sandals.
Next week, as you arebroadcasting live.
Coming up in this segment,we'll be talking about the
destination of the week, whichis Iceland.
But let's first get to thetravel news headlines.
Let's give listeners the moston-time airlines and airports of
2024.
How did Salt Lake do?
Mark Faldmo (03:27):
As far as airports go, our airport here in Salt
Lake City ranked fourth in theworld for on-time performance.
Patrick Wiscombe (03:35):
Oh, in the world.
Mark Faldmo (03:37):
Yeah, 83.8% of all flights departed on time.
On time is departing within 15minutes of the scheduled
departure time.
That's awesome.
Well done, Salt Lake.
Seriously, it was the onlyairport in North America to do
that, so it ranked fourth.
And there were three otherairports ahead of Salt Lake,
(03:57):
which was Riyadh and SaudiArabia, Lima, Peru and Mexico
City.
The ones ahead of Salt Lake ohwow, and we do it.
The ones ahead of Salt Lake ohwow, and we do it.
In the snow folks.
Yes, Before the new airportopened, Salt Lake could have
never got that because of howit's configured.
It's really configured to bepretty streamlined.
Patrick Wiscombe (04:16):
I will say that the Salt Lake Airport is
not only visually beautiful,it's efficient, for sure.
Mark Faldmo (04:22):
It is.
There are some places you haveto walk quite a while, but with
the new tunnel that alleviatedthat a little bit.
Let's talk about the airlines.
Let's do the top two airlines.
Aeromexico was the best at86.7% on time arrival, followed
by Saudi Arabian Airlines 86.35.
(04:43):
Saudi Arabian Airlines 86.35.
Delta came in third at 83.4%,which is very interesting
because, if you recall earlier,last summer they had the
CrowdStrike issue where they hadmassive cancellations and
delays.
For Delta to come in the topthree with that, that's pretty
good.
Patrick Wiscombe (05:03):
United is going to launch a Denver to Rome
or Rome to Denver service.
I thought that was interesting.
Mark Faldmo (05:09):
This is a seasonal service.
It'll run May 1st to September24th and be flown on a 787
Dreamliner, and United, as we'vetalked about in previous
episodes, is really expandingtheir network to Europe.
This is only a seasonal routeand Italy is a pretty popular
destination.
This should help in lowerprices to Italy.
Patrick Wiscombe (05:32):
A big travel trend in 2025 is called
noctourism, or nocturnal tourism.
Mark Faldmo (05:38):
Yeah, there was a study done out to 27,000
travelers.
One of the higher categoriesthat people had interested in
was doing activities on vacationat nighttime.
We've talked about in the pastthe Northern Lights.
There was a big increase inrequests for that last year and
this year it's expected toincrease 72%.
But there's also interest instargazing, which I remember.
(06:04):
One time I was on a cruise outin the middle of the Atlantic
Ocean and they had an astronomeron board and he had a
stargazing thing at midnight outin the middle of the dark ocean
.
Patrick Wiscombe (06:17):
How was that.
Mark Faldmo (06:18):
That was amazing.
To see the night sky wherethere's no light pollution is
amazing.
Norway, Iceland, Finland youget that.
In fact, we'll talk a littlebit about that in our
destination of the week, whichis Iceland.
But other things that peopleare interested in night dives on
the Great Barrier Reef inAustralia or in the Red Sea, see
(06:45):
and there's also safaricompanies that are starting to
offer nighttime game driveswhere you go out and see the
nocturnal animals and differentexperiences at night that you
can see on safari.
Patrick Wiscombe (06:52):
I'm thinking that that would almost be a
completely different experience,because some animals aren't
even out during the day, but atnight.
That's when they come to life.
Mark Faldmo (07:00):
I know we did kind of a later evening when I did a
safari and the animals were alldifferent compared to the day.
Patrick Wiscombe (07:08):
Were you nervous when you did that?
Mark Faldmo (07:10):
No, no, you're in a vehicle that is pretty sturdy
and the guides are good at whatthey do.
Keep you safe.
Patrick Wiscombe (07:22):
They're sturdy .
They're reasonably safe.
Yeah, keep you safe.
They're sturdy.
They're reasonably safe, yeah,all right.
So while you were talking aboutstargazing with the astronomer
and you were talking aboutIceland and the northern lights,
that's the perfect segue intoour destination of the week,
which is Iceland.
You have been there?
How many times?
Mark Faldmo (07:41):
I've been to Iceland three times.
It's a place that I love.
I have family history that'sthere.
As we talked about last week,I've got a lot of Scandinavian
family history.
So Norway and Iceland is wheremost of my family's from.
So I love Iceland.
I would go back there any timeof the year, even in the middle
of the winter.
Patrick Wiscombe (08:00):
Oh, so it was that kind of fun.
Mark Faldmo (08:03):
Yeah, it's amazing.
If you're looking for things todo in the nighttime, winter is
a great place in Iceland to dothose.
Patrick Wiscombe (08:10):
Well, let's talk about this base camp idea
in Iceland.
Mark Faldmo (08:14):
There are really three ways that you can see
Iceland.
One is just use Reykjavik, thecapital city, as a base camp.
If you're going to do that, youcould see everything in that
area in five to seven days.
You could stay longer if youwanted, but if you wanted to
just use that as a base camp andgo out and do the different
(08:35):
things, you can do that.
Another way you can see Icelandis Drive the Ring Road, and
this is the road that goes allthe way around Iceland and you
need seven to 10 days to do that.
There are some prettyinteresting itineraries you can
see driving the Ring Road.
The last way to see Iceland isby cruise ship.
(08:56):
There are some cruises that dothe circumference of Iceland or
at least have a few stops inIceland.
Those are the three ways thatyou can do Iceland.
I like the base camp ideaspending a few days in Reykjavik
five to seven days and goingout and seeing what you can see
from there.
Have you done a cruise?
Yeah, I've done two cruisesthat included Iceland as ports.
Patrick Wiscombe (09:20):
Was it an Iceland only, or was it a
Iceland?
Reykjavik and British Islestour.
Mark Faldmo (09:26):
The one I did was Iceland and British Isles, oh
wow.
And the other one I did, wecalled it Path of the Vikings.
So it was British Isles,Iceland and then Canada.
We did so.
We sailed from London to NewYork and stopped for a day in
Iceland.
Patrick Wiscombe (09:44):
What cruise line did you do that one on?
Mark Faldmo (09:45):
All the cruises were on Norwegian cruise line
that I've done.
That included Iceland.
Patrick Wiscombe (09:50):
So you probably went on the Prima, then
the ship.
Mark Faldmo (09:53):
I was lucky enough to be on the inaugural, the
naming where they named thecruise ship, in Reykjavik, and
then we did a Norway and BritishIsles cruise.
Patrick Wiscombe (10:02):
Oh man, that is a good itinerary.
Yeah, when is the best time togo to Iceland?
Mark Faldmo (10:08):
The best time to go to Iceland is between May and
September.
May and September are going tohave the least amount of crowds.
It'll get a little bit morecrowded as you go into the
summer but weather-wise that'sthe best time to go May and
September.
But if you're looking to go seethe Northern Lights it's the
exact opposite.
It's October through March besttime to see the Northern Lights
(10:31):
.
Patrick Wiscombe (10:31):
That was a spectacular.
It was absolutely breathtaking.
Mark Faldmo (10:35):
The Northern Lights are amazing, and the further
north you get, especially up inIceland or even on the north
side of the island, amazingNorthern Lights.
Patrick Wiscombe (10:44):
What are some of the things that you should do
while you're there?
Mark Faldmo (10:46):
Well, I think everyone should take a Golden
Circle tour.
This is a tour, it's a day tripfrom Reykjavik.
You go around and you seegeysers waterfalls One of the
most intriguing places that yousee there is you're actually
standing on the fault line thatdivides North American plate and
(11:07):
the European plate, so you canstand in Europe and North
America at the same time.
There's a big valley wherethere's some smaller cliffs,
where the land has pulled apart,and so you can walk right down
the fault line beyond Europe andNorth America at the same time
so isn't that the, uh, the trailthat you were on, that you had
pictures of kind of goingbetween, uh, I won't say, two
(11:30):
mountains, it was more hill liketwo, two cliffs and the cliffs
are like 50 feet.
They're not, they're not hugecliffs.
Patrick Wiscombe (11:38):
Okay, yes, that was it.
That was pretty cool to see youdo that.
It was in the, if memory serves.
It was kind of a walkway, butit had ropes too, a little bit
of an incline or decline.
Mark Faldmo (11:49):
Yeah, it was a paved pathway.
Patrick Wiscombe (11:51):
Yeah.
Mark Faldmo (11:51):
They have a museum there that kind of explains
everything.
That is my favorite thing to do, you know going seeing the
geysers.
If you've been to Yellowstone,it's very similar to Yellowstone
, but a little bit differentsetting there in Iceland.
What the Yellowstone, but alittle bit different setting
there in Iceland.
What else should we do there?
Skagafoss Waterfall I don'tknow if I'm saying that right.
Like we said last week, Ishould learn to pronounce these
(12:16):
things.
Icelandic and Norwegian arehard languages.
So Skagafoss Waterfall it's ahuge waterfall.
If you Google it, the picturesof it are quite amazing.
Another thing that I thinkeveryone should do is go to Blue
Lagoon, which is a hot spring.
It's a little touristy but it'sworth going.
It is back open as of December15th we talked about last fall.
Blue Lagoon closed oh, that'sright Because of the volcanic
(12:39):
eruption and they got lava ranthrough their parking lot.
So they've either built a newparking lot or figured out a way
to get people to Blue Lagoon.
And then the next thing is towalk or just experience a
glacier.
In Iceland From Reykjavik thereare a couple that you can get
to fairly easily.
I've seen tours where you cansnowmobile.
(13:02):
You can do different things onthe glaciers, I think, kind of a
beautiful experience.
I mean, just seeing the majestyof a glacier from a distance is
amazing.
Being that close and personalwould also be pretty amazing.
Patrick Wiscombe (13:16):
Well, you've sold me.
I think you just have my creditcard on file at this point.
Mark Faldmo (13:20):
Yep, we'll get you to Iceland.
Patrick Wiscombe (13:23):
Yeah, I need to do that.
If you have desires to go toIceland, call Mark during the
break 888-718-7717.
888-718-7717.
And we'll also post this onblueplanetvacations.
com.
Coming up in the next segment,we've got the hot travel deal of
(13:47):
the week.
Delta Vacations has a promotionwhere you can save $200 off to
Mexico and the Caribbean.
That is next when the InsideTravel Talk podcast and radio
show continues.
Alongside Mark Faldmo, my nameis Patrick Wiscombe.
Thank you, Really.
Thank you so much for allowingus to be part of your weekend.
We will be right back.
Show Voice (14:12):
Taking you to destinations around the world.
The Inside Travel Talk podcastand radio show is presented by
BluePlanetVacations.
com, America's best traveladvisors.
Call or text the show now801-649-3700, 801-649-3700.
Thanks for listening.
(14:33):
We'll be right back.
Ad Voice (14:43):
Inside Travel Talk is brought to you by Travelex
Insurance Services.
Their travel insurance planscan help protect you and your
vacation.
Travelex is known for theiraward-winning customer service
and high claims paid rate.
Contact Blue Planet Vacationsat 888-718-7717 or
blueplanetvacations.
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Show Voice (15:11):
Now back to the Inside Travel Talk podcast and
radio show presented byblueplanetvacations.
com, America's best traveladvisors.
Call or text the show right now801-649-3700, 801-649-3700.
And check out the podcast atInsideTravelTalk.
com.
Patrick Wiscombe (15:36):
Here's Patrick Wiscombe and Mark Faldmo
Broadcasting live from Salt LakeCity, Utah.
You are listening to the InsideTravel Talk podcast and radio
show.
Alongside my good friend, markFaldmo, my name is Patrick
Wiscombe.
Thank you so much for allowingus to be part of your weekend.
(15:58):
As we talk travel, mark and Ilove to travel, love to travel
and love to share our adventureswith our listeners, and the
entire purpose of this show isto help you plan and book your
next vacation or just give youideas of where to go on vacation
.
And since it is cold outside,we thought we'd talk about
(16:23):
Mexico and the Caribbean, andDelta Vacations is allowing our
listeners to save up to $200 offon a Mexico and or a Caribbean
vacation.
We'll get to that here in justa second.
But let's get to the travelnews headlines.
I saw this story that Italyleads global travel destinations
(16:45):
for this past year, 2024 andinto 2025, according to this
study.
Mark Faldmo (16:52):
Yeah, so this was a study of tour operators and it
was judging demand for theirtours.
This pretty much mirrors otherstudies that I've seen of just
people where they want to travel.
So Italy, for 2025, is the mostrequested single destination,
followed by Portugal, and Greecewas third on that list.
(17:15):
In fact, Europe makes up about55% of all of this demand.
Patrick Wiscombe (17:20):
Is it my imagination, or is Italy
starting to kind of have aresurgence in tourism?
Mark Faldmo (17:26):
or is this just a post-COVID thing, or yes, yes,
you know, Italy post-COVID hasbeen probably the most requested
that I've had and I've seenreports on this.
Italy continues to be thestrongest in demand country to
visit in all of Europe.
Patrick Wiscombe (17:43):
Wow, any particular destination, Rome, or
just the whole thing?
Mark Faldmo (17:48):
Just Italy in general.
One of these days we'll have togo over I think we did this
early, early on but go over mypreferred Italy itinerary that I
like to do.
Patrick Wiscombe (18:00):
Belize is going to require new travel
authorizations from Americansstarting this year, 2025.
We're sure seeing a surge ofthese travel authorization forms
.
Mark Faldmo (18:11):
Yeah, we're seeing a lot of those come in, although
this one is they want to gopaperless.
Before, the flight attendantswould hand out a form that you
had to fill out on the planebefore you landed and you'd give
it to the immigration.
So they are just moving thisauthorization form, they're
moving an electronic, which Ilike.
I'd rather have the electronicform have it done.
(18:33):
One of the biggest gripes I hadis I never had access to a pen
to fill that out.
And then you're asking all thepassengers around you.
You have a pen.
The flight attendants alwayssaid we don't have enough pens
for everybody, so share withyour neighbor.
I like the fact that this iselectronic.
Patrick Wiscombe (18:53):
If you are a Disneyland fan, they are
offering a promotion forlisteners right now.
What are the details on thatpromotion?
Mark Faldmo (19:02):
This is for Disneyland California specific.
Last week we talked about WaltDisney World offer and we talked
about a Disney cruise offer,both which are still valid.
If you want information on that, you can go to
blueplanetvacations.
com to see what those are.
But this is Disneyland specificand this is book three nights,
(19:22):
receive a fourth night free at aGood Neighbor Hotel.
Patrick Wiscombe (19:26):
The Good Neighbor Hotel that I like
because it's close.
It's not the only one.
They actually have a few dozenhotels was the Fairfield, across
the street from Disneyland Parkon the east side, that
Fairfield.
Mark Faldmo (19:39):
I've stayed at that one quite a bit, One that I
used to use years ago buthaven't as much, but is the Best
Western Raffles in the streets,which is also in a pretty good
location.
So those are the two that I'drecommend.
There are about 20 goodneighbor hotels on the list, but
if you want to be withinwalking distance or you just
(20:03):
basically walk across the street, that Fairfield Inn is a great
option.
When I was there like six yearsago, which was the last time I
was there, I was surprised therewas still a Tony Roma's there.
Oh, I didn't know that Right bythat Fairfield.
Ad Voice (20:16):
Yeah, okay.
Mark Faldmo (20:17):
It probably is not there now, but I was surprised
to see that I always liked TonyRoma's.
Mimi's was in that parking lotas well Mimi's was also in the
parking lot yeah, so so it it'slocated pretty well to well one
the main gate of Disneyland,which is the purpose of your
trip.
And then there are some foodoptions around there where you
(20:38):
don't have to spend Disneyprices to eat.
You have to have to spendCalifornia prices but not Disney
prices.
Patrick Wiscombe (20:46):
It's only slightly less offensive.
Yes, yeah, all right, let's getto the hot travel deal of the
week, which is always in thesecond segment of the show, and
we're talking about going toMexico and the Caribbean.
And what deal do we have forlisteners this week On the show
sheet?
Mark Faldmo (21:03):
I mistyped it a little bit.
It's actually Hawaii, Mexicoand the Caribbean.
Patrick Wiscombe (21:08):
Oh well, that's even better.
Mark Faldmo (21:09):
Yeah, so this is for all, basically warm weather
destinations.
So this is save up to $200 offAgain Mexico, Hawaii and the
Caribbean and it's a tiereddiscount, so that discount
starts at $25 and goes up to$200, based on what you spend.
Looking at the average cost, isthat per person, that is per
(21:30):
package, oh, per package, sothat is per package.
And looking at the average costof what my customers have paid,
that's going to be somewherebetween the $75 and $125 off
booking there.
Patrick Wiscombe (21:43):
All three destinations Hawaii, Mexico and
the Caribbean.
You just can't go wrong period.
Let me toss you a curveball.
This is courtesy of DeltaVacations, where you save up to
$200 off to Hawaii, Mexico andthe Caribbean.
Do you have to fly on Delta toget to any of those locations,
or can you fly a differentairline and then get this Delta
(22:06):
vacations offer?
Mark Faldmo (22:08):
Yes and no.
So it is Delta Airlines.
So if you include the flight inthis, you do have to fly on
Delta Airlines or one of itspartners.
So you could use Aeromexico toMexico and still get this.
You could do a land only andget this, but I wouldn't
recommend that.
You'll get a better savings ifyou bundle it with the air and
(22:31):
the hotel.
But there is one bonus, becausethis is Delta vacations and we
talked about this a few weeksago.
Delta has changed their programwhere now you're going to get
those medallion qualifying mileson the full package price.
So, like Patrick, if you wereto book a $4,000 package to
(22:54):
Hawaii, you would get 4,000medallion qualifying miles.
That is significant, or dollarsmedallion, qualifying dollars,
as they say.
That would put youautomatically at silver
medallion status.
Patrick Wiscombe (23:07):
Because then it gets you to the level that
you need to to continuequalifying for To continue to
qualify.
Yeah.
Mark Faldmo (23:12):
Okay, and you know that would be halfway to gold.
You know I've seen people.
I actually do have a customerthat was booked a pretty
extensive trip to the West CoastIn the US.
They're doing several days, sothat person is getting gold
status just for booking the trip.
That's nice if you're lookingfor status or want to at least
(23:34):
have status, it'll help you getthere.
Patrick Wiscombe (23:35):
Is it any location in Mexico?
Mark Faldmo (23:38):
It's anywhere that Delta Airlines or Aeromexico
flies, okay, well, that's anextensive network, so yeah, and
then again anywhere in theCaribbean, anywhere in Hawaii uh
, the delta flies.
Patrick Wiscombe (23:50):
It's cold just just go, just book it.
Call mark 888-718-7717.
888-718-7717 to book yourvacation to Hawaii, Mexico or
the Caribbean.
Nikki and I were just there in.
When was it?
Was that June?
Yeah, I think it was theCaribbean.
(24:12):
Yep, Awesome, Absolutelyamazing.
Call Mark.
Here's the phone number onemore time 888-718-7717.
And you can also check outblueplanetvacations.
com.
When we come back, the final 30minutes of the show, we've got
the infamous Just Cruisingsegment and we are talking about
(24:33):
tall ships.
We'll give you the details onthat when the Inside Travel Talk
podcast and radio showcontinues Alongside Mark Faldmo,
my name is Patrick Wiscombe.
Thank you so much for allowingus to be part of your Saturday
and Sunday.
We will be right back.
Show Voice (24:53):
You're listening to the Inside Travel Talk podcast
and radio show with PatrickWiscombe and Mark Faldmo,
presented by BluePlanetVacations.
com America's best traveladvisors.
Call or text the show now801-649-3700.
That's 801-649-3700.
And check out the podcast atInsideTravelTalk.
(25:15):
com.
We'll be right back.
Ad Voice (25:28):
This segment of Inside Travel Talk is sponsored by El
Dorado Spa Resorts.
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Patrick Wiscombe (25:55):
Welcome back to the Inside Travel Talk
podcast and radio show Coming up.
In the next 30 minutes, markand I will be talking about
cruising on a Clipper ship,which he has done A Virgin
Voyages annual cruise pass Kindof like that idea, an annual
cruise pass and Princess hasunveiled their 2026-2027 West
(26:17):
Coast sailing schedule.
We'll talk about why they'rereleasing it so early.
Let's get back to the show.
The Inside Travel Talk podcastand radio show presented by
BluePlanetVacations.
com contains travel deals,promotions and offers that may
be time sensitive.
All offers and information wereaccurate when the show aired.
Travel deals and offers changeconstantly and are capacity
(26:40):
controlled and subject to changewithout notice.
Show Voice (26:50):
This is the Inside Travel Talk podcast and radio
show presented byBluePlanetVacations.
com, America's best traveladvisors.
Call or text the show right now801-649-3700, 801-649-3700.
And now here are your hostsPatrick.
Patrick Wiscombe (27:15):
Wiscombe and Mark Faldmo, all aboard for the
infamous Just Cruising segment.
My name is Patrick Wiscombe,alongside Mark Faldmo.
Thank you for joining us forthe next 30 minutes as we talk
about travel and in this segmentit's only about cruising and we
(27:40):
will take your phone calls.
If you want to text yourtravel-related questions while
we're here in the studio, pleasedo so.
The text number is 801-649-3700.
801-649-3700.
And Mark and I are presented byhis company called
(28:00):
BluePlanetVacations.
com, and just thank you forallowing us to be part of your
weekend, whatever you're doing.
All right, mark, it is time toget to the uh cruise deal of the
week here in just a second.
How many times have you sailedon star clippers, the tall ships
(28:21):
?
I've sailed once on starclippers and your favorite
memory from that was, I'm gonnasay, lane in the uh.
What do they call it?
The, not the ropes, not thecanopy either the mesh that's
out in front of the ship.
Mark Faldmo (28:36):
Thank you, yes, I enjoyed that.
I actually think my favoritespot was the passengers go into
kind of a lottery and theychoose who gets to go out on a
lifeboat as they're raising thesails.
So you get to see raising thesails from outside of the ship.
That was probably my favoriteexperience uh, seeing and
(28:59):
experiencing that.
Patrick Wiscombe (29:00):
And that was a lottery Really.
That was, yeah, interestingyeah.
Mark Faldmo (29:03):
Cause the life was oh interesting, yeah, because
the lifeboat only holds I don'tknow 100 people and there's a
couple hundred on the cruiseship.
Patrick Wiscombe (29:10):
Oh, that's right yeah because the crowds
are so much smaller.
Yeah, okay, before we get tothe Star Clippers deal or the
cruise deal of the week aboutStar Clippers, let's get to the
cruise news headlines.
I was happy to see thatPrincess Cruises has unveiled
their 2026-2027 West Coastsailing schedule.
(29:32):
That was great, but thequestion I have for you is why
is Princess unveiling theirsailing schedule so early?
Mark Faldmo (29:40):
I mean, that's one to two years from now, yeah,
that's, two years from now, iswhen most of this starts.
And the reason why is becauseone, they need a little bit lead
time to start selling some ofthis, and two, people are
booking their vacations that farin advance now, so there is a
huge demand.
And then, as far as thecustomer perspective, if you
(30:03):
book now you'll get the bestprice Typically cruise lines,
with a few exceptions, but everyfew months they increase the
price.
So if you're waiting to bookthis five months in advance,
it'll probably cost you $150,$200 more per person than it
would have if you would havebooked it when the cruise first
came out.
(30:23):
If you're looking for cruisedeals, look for at least a year
and a half in advance.
Patrick Wiscombe (30:29):
How do you find out about things in advance
?
Do you just have to go to eachone of the cruise lines and
basically sign up for theiremail?
Mark Faldmo (30:36):
Yeah, you can do that or listen to the show.
I get all of these notices andso you know we've put a few of
these announcements out.
I also do put them out on theHot Deal update.
Oh, that's right that BluePlanet Vacations has.
Patrick Wiscombe (30:51):
Which, by the way, just while we're there, if
you want to just get a summaryof all of the vacations without
being bombarded by all of thecruise lines, and you just want
one email with everything, telllisteners how they can sign up
for your email and where to go.
Mark Faldmo (31:06):
Yeah, so you can go to blueplanetvacations.
com and if you're a first timevisitor, a form will pop up to
register for our email list, oryou can click on hot deal update
in the navigation and that'lltake you to a page where you can
fill out your information andget on our list.
Patrick Wiscombe (31:22):
What are some of the destinations for the West
Coast sailing season?
So?
Mark Faldmo (31:26):
there's two aspects here.
One is they are moving the StarPrincess, which is their new
ship, to the West Coast.
We've noticed this trend in thelast few years where we are
getting newer ships on the WestCoast.
Ten years ago it would be theoldest, the worst ships sailing
the Mexican Riviera, forinstance, and now we're getting
(31:49):
more and more new ships becausethey are moving those ships
eventually into Alaska, wherethey do want their new ships for
Alaska.
And so part of this 2026 and2027 West Coast season, it
features 69 voyages across 26destinations departing from Los
Angeles, san Francisco andVancouver my perception was that
(32:11):
all the new ships went to theeast coast, went to Bahamas,
went to Caribbean.
Patrick Wiscombe (32:14):
I'm glad to see that this trend is starting
to change, because those shipswere kind of old.
Mark Faldmo (32:20):
Yeah, so they were we are getting the newer ships,
which I really like, yeah, andand so in this, from Los Angeles
, the star princess will beoffering seven-day Mexican
Riviera cruises, and then thediscovery princess, which is
also one of the newer ships,will be sailing seven-day
Mexican Riviera cruises, and theemerald princess will be
(32:44):
offering 16-day round-tripHawaiian island cruises.
So those will either leave fromit doesn't say here, but it's
either Los Angeles, sanFrancisco, so you only have to
fly to the West Coast and youget a 16-day Hawaiian island
cruise.
And it also will offer 10-dayBaja and Sea of Cortez sailings,
which I think is fantastic10-day Baja and Sea of Cortez
sailings which I think isfantastic.
(33:04):
I love sailing in the Sea ofCortez.
Patrick Wiscombe (33:07):
Oh, yes, okay, so they are really starting to
up their game, then that wouldsuggest that cruising is now
becoming more popular than ever.
Mark Faldmo (33:14):
Yes, Wow.
And then one itinerary that I'mexcited that they're bringing
back is a 32-day cruise roundtrip South Pacific and Hawaii
cruise.
Ad Voice (33:25):
So, Italy.
Mark Faldmo (33:26):
from Los Angeles, san Francisco goes to the
Hawaiian islands, usually Fiji,Tahiti ends back in on the West
coast, so that's a prettyexciting itinerary.
Patrick Wiscombe (33:37):
Yeah, that's a good one.
I'm glad to see that Princessis really upping their game,
updating their ships, new ships,west coast.
This has needed to happen for along time.
Here's an idea that I can getbehind the annual cruise pass.
Now, obviously it's going tocost some money, but the annual
cruise pass of just basicallyjumping on a ship in this
particular case it's VirginVoyages what are the details and
(33:59):
how much does it cost to getthe Virgin Voyages annual cruise
pass?
Mark Faldmo (34:03):
What Virgin has found is they have remote
workers that are working onboard cruise ship.
So they decided to offer thisannual pass for 2025.
It's available for sale nowthrough April, and you got to
move quick then.
Yes, you do.
This is good on any of theirsailings in the Caribbean, in
(34:24):
Europe, any of their worldcruises.
So if you buy this annual pass,you only have to pay the
government, taxes and fees tosail In a balcony cabin, you get
priority boarding, free laundryservice, a dedicated concierge
for every voyage you're on,unlimited premium access and
$100 bar tab per voyage.
(34:45):
The price tag of this is fairlyhefty it's $120,000.
But if you sail half the year,that'll easily pay for itself.
If you're a remote worker,that's your lodging, all of your
food, your internet, everythingyou would need to work.
Or if you're just an avidcruiser, traveler, this is a
(35:05):
great way to do that.
You know especially where it'svalid on any voyage their Europe
voyages, their Mediterraneanvoyages, Caribbean, anywhere
they sail in the world, andthey'll be sailing not this
coming season but the followingseason in Alaska.
So now you can even do westcoast us on virgin voyages.
Patrick Wiscombe (35:26):
Do any other ships Princess, MSC, royal
Caribbean do they offer annualpasses, or is this kind of a new
idea?
Mark Faldmo (35:34):
I've heard of it offered before, but I've not
seen it offered in a while and Icould have just missed the
story.
This is the first one wherethey've really gone out and
published it.
Patrick Wiscombe (35:44):
Let's get to the cruise deal of the week,
which is the Star Clippers deal.
Let's let our listeners knowwhat the deal is and where they
can sail.
Yeah.
Mark Faldmo (35:53):
So Star Clippers is one of the most enjoyable
experiences you can have whencruising.
Now, it's a small ship they'reeither a three to five masted
ship, depending on which ship oftheirs you go on but it is just
an amazing experience and theyhave up to $500 per cabin
airfare credit and a beveragecredit, and this is on top of
(36:18):
right.
Now they have a 65% off thebrochure rate cruise.
You can get an air credit and abeverage credit on top of that.
Now, how this works is three tosix day cruises get $150 per
person air credit, seven to nineday cruises get a $200 per
person air credit, and 10 plusdays get a $250 per person
(36:39):
airfare credit.
Patrick Wiscombe (36:40):
Generally speaking, don't they sail out of
the East?
Mark Faldmo (36:42):
Coast.
They do Caribbean sailings,they do Central America sailings
and they sail in theMediterranean, particularly
around Greece is where a lot oftheir sailings are.
Now I chose two sailings tokind of highlight here.
One that just fascinates me isRound Trip Athens.
It does Greek Isles.
(37:05):
That goes to Spetses, Mykonos,Armagos, Patmos and Kusadasi,
where you can get to Ephesus inTurkey and then back to Athens.
To do this on a sailing ship, Ithink would be amazing and to
get to those Greek islands.
Some of those are not on thebig ship, so you get to go to
(37:25):
these smaller, more remote ports.
Patrick Wiscombe (37:29):
What was the name of the city where you had
Coke and olives on that rooftop?
Mark Faldmo (37:34):
That was in Santorini, oh, Santorini, which
wasn't on this sailing.
Patrick Wiscombe (37:38):
Okay.
Mark Faldmo (37:39):
They do have sailings that do that.
One thing about these ships isthey don't do your typical round
trip, even though what I justgave you is a round trip.
But this cruise ship goesbasically between Venice and
Istanbul and you buy segments ofthat and then they have a
couple of these round tripAthens pancaked in between that,
(37:59):
so you get some really uniqueitineraries on this.
Patrick Wiscombe (38:04):
How much is the Eastern Mediterranean
itinerary, generally speaking so?
Mark Faldmo (38:08):
that one starts at $2,300 per person.
And what?
Patrick Wiscombe (38:13):
about Central.
Mark Faldmo (38:14):
America and then Central America.
These are usually either roundtrip Costa Rica or they go
between Costa Rica and,basically, panama City.
I chose a round trip Costa Ricaone because then you can go
spend a few days and go toArenal Volcano one of my
favorite spots on that but itgoes to Tortuga Island, goes to
(38:38):
Capos, which is where ManuelAntonio is.
We've talked about ManuelAntonio a few times on this show
.
Goes to other places that I'venot been, but I've been reading
about them and they lookfantastic.
Goes to Golfito, goes to CobiaNational Park in Panama and goes
to Marine National Park inPanama.
All of these are on the WestCoast of Panama and Costa Rica
(39:02):
and that one starts at $1870 perperson for a seven-day cruise
Again these are probably some ofthe most unique travel
experiences.
Patrick Wiscombe (39:13):
You can have One of our contacts at Star
Clippers.
Her name is Beth and I thinkshe's retired.
Is that right, Mark?
That is, she's recently retired.
Good for her.
One of the most effective linesthat she ever used on me was
Patrick, it is so quiet, youdon't hear the rumble.
You don't hear the rumble, youdon't hear the rattle of the
engine.
It's just quiet becauseeverything's under wind power.
(39:33):
Now they do have engines on theship, just in case.
But she goes.
It is just different, and wasthat your experience as well?
Mark Faldmo (39:42):
Yeah, when you're truly sailing, it is a different
experience.
Go up on deck watch the oceango by.
One thing that I foundfascinating on Star Clippers is
the bridge it's just right there.
You just go stand behind themon the bridge as they're sailing
the ship and telling what allthe sailors to do with the sails
and all of that.
(40:02):
It's pretty fascinating becauseit's not a normal bridge like
you would see on a big cruiseship.
It's just right there on deck.
Patrick Wiscombe (40:10):
So if you're looking for something unique,
you've absolutely found thesolution to the problem that
you've been trying to find asolution for Star Clippers.
Call Mark in his office, justget the conversation rolling.
There's no obligation, justcall him.
Just get the conversationrolling.
There's no obligation.
Just call them.
(40:31):
888-718-7717.
888-718-7717.
And Air Canada is removing freecarry-on luggage for basic fare
(40:52):
.
Uh-oh, we're also going to talkabout how to avoid being
pickpocketed.
That is next when the InsideTravel Talk podcast or radio
show continues.
Alongside Mark Faldmo, my nameis Patrick Wiscombe.
Thank you so much for allowingus to be part of your Saturday
and Sunday.
We will be right back.
Show Voice (41:15):
Explore your world.
You're listening to the InsideTravel Talk podcast and radio
show with Patrick Wiscombe andMark Faldmo.
Call or text the show now801-649-3700.
That's 801-649-3700.
And check out the podcast atInsideTravelTalk.
com.
We'll be right back.
Ad Voice (41:44):
Inside Travel Talk is brought to you by Anna.
Waterways, from castles andcapitals to vistas and villages
visit some of Europe's mostremarkable sites and cities To
set out on your own river cruisejourney.
Contact Blue Planet Vacationsat 888-718-7717 or
blueplanetvacations.
com.
Show Voice (42:20):
This is the Inside Travel Talk podcast and radio
show with Patrick Wiscombe andMark Faldmo, presented by
BluePlanetVacations.
com America's best traveladvisors.
Call the show right now801-649-3700, 801-649-3700.
801-649-3700.
And now your hosts, PatrickWiscombe and Mark Faldmo.
Patrick Wiscombe (42:39):
Broadcasting live from the Wiscombe-Faldmo
Radio Studios right here in SaltLake City Radio Studios.
Right here in Salt Lake City,you are listening to the Inside
Travel Talk podcast and radioshow for January 11th and 12th.
Thank you so much for allowingus to be part of your weekend
(42:59):
and if you want to listen tothis show again tomorrow meaning
Sunday we're on all radiostations starting at 11 o'clock
Mountain Time and you can alsostream the show on 860 KKAT.
And you can also listen to theshow again by just simply going
(43:21):
to InsideTravelTalk.
com InsideTravelTalk.
com and you can just stream theshow on the website.
But if you're a podcaster,we're on all of the major
podcast platforms.
Just do a search for InsideTravel Talk and you will find me
and Mark.
(43:42):
All right, final segment.
We've got your travel tips.
We're going to recap the deals.
We're going to tell you how toavoid being pickpocketed while
you are on vacation.
But let's do the final segmentof the travel news headlines,
and there was a news story thatthe department of transportation
is finalizing, or finalized,the Washington Reagan route
(44:06):
awards.
I don't even know what that'sabout.
Mark Faldmo (44:08):
Yeah, and a lot of people don't know this, but
Reagan National Airport inWashington DC that is the
closest airport to downtownWashington DC and it is not an
international airport, it's anational airport or a regional
airport.
I did not know that the DOT hasa rule that only flights within
(44:29):
a 1,250 mile perimeter can flyto Reagan National Airport.
Now, a few years ago they madean exemption for a few routes.
Delta got an exemption from SaltLake City, so we are outside of
that limit.
But we do have a nonstop flightto Reagan and there's 20
(44:51):
current flights and they justawarded Alaska Airlines to be
able to fly there from San Diego, American from San Antonio,
delta from Seattle, southwestfrom Las Vegas and United from
San Francisco.
So if I had my choice betweenthe airports Dulles Airport or
Reagan, I would fly into Reaganeven if I had to connect.
(45:13):
It's so much more convenientthan Dulles.
Patrick Wiscombe (45:17):
The way that I was reading this was the
Washington Reagan route awards,meaning you know first place,
second place, third place.
You're talking about thesedifferent cities San Diego, Salt
Lake, San Antonio.
They are awarding theexceptions is the way I just
understood you.
Yes, I thought that they weregoing to be.
(45:39):
You know, hey, you've come infirst place because fantastic
food on board or something, orin the airport.
Air Canada has removed freecarry-on luggage for basic
airfare.
I don't like the trend of this.
I'm starting to see this just alittle bit with some of the
airlines.
Mark Faldmo (45:59):
Yeah, it is, and I love how the airline releases
this to the passengers.
So first I'll go over what thisis.
So they're removing.
You no longer get acomplimentary piece of carry-on
luggage.
You only get a small purse or ahandbag.
Patrick Wiscombe (46:14):
Not even a backpack.
Not even a backpack.
Mark Faldmo (46:17):
So just your small personal item.
This is again only if you arein their basic economy.
It's $35 for carry-on bags.
Patrick Wiscombe (46:29):
Okay, now those numbers seem to be fairly
consistent between the airlines,somewhere between $30 and $50
for each and every carry-on.
Mark Faldmo (46:37):
Yeah, and you know, I love how the airline releases
this.
We've listened to our customersand we're implementing this
because you want us to providethe very lowest fares, but
they're not going to lower theirfare by $35.
They're going to keep it thesame, but make you pay $35
additional.
So, I always love that whenthey term this, as we've
(46:59):
listened to you and we know thisis what you want.
Patrick Wiscombe (47:02):
That is corporate speak, for we need to
raise prices, but we're going toblame it on the passengers.
Yeah, I want to talk to youabout this story.
You had a pickpocketing storyactually two or three so I
wanted to bring this up on theshow of how to avoid being
pickpocketed when you're onvacation or if you're just
(47:23):
traveling the first tip is usecards over cash.
Mark Faldmo (47:27):
If your card gets pickpocketed, you can cancel it.
Patrick Wiscombe (47:31):
Usually on the app.
Now they've made it reallysimple.
Mark Faldmo (47:34):
Yeah, you can freeze it or cancel it pretty
easily and don't carry around alot of cash, and I guess we
should go back.
The very first thing is kind ofknow where you're at.
Know the cities that have a lotof pickpockets.
Know if you're in a touristarea there are probably a lot of
pickpockets around.
Be aware of your surroundings.
(47:55):
Keep money close.
I always keep my money andcredit cards in a money necklace
, so something that hangs aroundmy neck, and I tuck it in
between my shirt so it's noteasy to get at for a
pickpocketer.
I also suggest on that, get anRFID money belt or an RFID
(48:16):
backpack If your passport andcredit cards are in there.
There's technology now wheresomeone can get within a few
feet of you and steal yourcredit cards and your passport
information by standing near toyou.
So get an RFID blocking bag.
Patrick Wiscombe (48:30):
So what I'm hearing you say is keep your
enemies close and your money andpassport closer.
Correct With RFID.
Mark Faldmo (48:38):
With RFID.
Okay, you can buy backpacks andbags that are harder for the
pickpockets to get in Backpackswith lockable zippers,
slash-proof backpacks All ofthis can be found on Amazon.
Dressed down, don't look likean obvious tourist.
I used to walk around with mycamera around my neck and, like
(49:00):
boy, I sure look like a tourist.
So dress down a little bit.
And then one that I've neverthought of before, but I
probably should have, issafeguard your phone.
A lot of people in your walletsyou have.
In the wallet app on your phoneyou have all of your credit
card information.
If your phone was to get stolenand you didn't have your phone
(49:22):
securely locked down, peoplecould just get on and get all of
your credit card information, alot of personal details, from
your phone.
I've even heard people sayclear out your wallets when
you're traveling so there's nopersonal information in them,
just in case something doeshappen to your phone.
And then the last thing is bealert in crowds.
I was with a group in Barcelona.
(49:44):
We got off the subway and, asthe doors were closing, out came
all of our wallets.
So the pickpocketers got ourwallets on the subway, took all
the money out.
They threw them back, luckily,driver's license, credit cards,
everything was still there.
So I put this in the realm of.
These were the nicepickpocketers.
(50:05):
They just took the cash andgave back everything else.
But when you're in a subway ora crowded place, be alert.
The other thing is watch forpeople trying to distract you.
I've told this story before.
I was in Paris by the Arc deTriomphe.
Guy came up to me and just keptasking do you know judo, do you
know judo?
And he was touching me andtrying to show me judo moves,
(50:28):
all while he was distracting meso he could get my wallet.
Luckily, all I had in mypockets was a subway map, so it
was really hard to get back towhere I was going.
But watch for that.
People just doing weird thingslike that bumping into you.
We've all seen that on themovies, where the spy bumps into
someone and pickpockets them.
(50:49):
So that's how it really doeswork.
Patrick Wiscombe (50:51):
That's a genuine skill, not a skill that
I want.
It's impressive that they canpick you that quick.
Mark Faldmo (50:57):
I guess another tip you know, if you're doing some
of those Taurus things, do themwith a guide.
I know every time I'm aroundthe Colosseum in Rome the guide
is always vigilant.
Most guides know who thepickpocketers are and I've had
guides say watch that person,he's a pickpocketer.
I've had them yellpickpocketers off from our group
before.
And so you know that issomething if you're doing.
(51:19):
Some of those tourist sites doit with a guide because they
often know the pickpocketers andthey watch out for the
activities for pickpocketers.
Patrick Wiscombe (51:30):
Well, that's going to do it.
Very, very helpful tips.
Thank you, mark.
If you want to book any of thevacations that we have talked
about during the show, pleasecall Mark in his office,
888-718-7717.
You can listen to the showagain tomorrow morning, Sunday,
(51:54):
at 11 am, right here on thisradio station or whatever radio
station you're listening to, andyou can stream, download and
subscribe to the podcast atInsideTravelTalk.
com, where we are on all of themajor podcast platforms.
Well, it's your turn now.
We've done our job.
Get out and explore the worldwhile you can, because you never
(52:17):
know what curveball's life isgoing to throw at you.
Do yourself a favor.
Live your life deliberately,live your life intentionally,
and thanks for listening.
Have a great week, mark, and Iwill talk to you again next.
Show Voice (52:34):
Saturday.
That's it.
That's the end of the showYou've been listening to the
Inside Travel Talk podcast andradio show with Patrick Wiscombe
and Mark Faldmo, presented byBluePlanetVacations.
com.
Book your adventure right now.
Call 888-718-7717.
That's 888-718-7717.
(52:56):
Thanks for listening.
Have a great week.
It is the weekend, which means it's time
for the Inside Travel Talkpodcast and radio show Coming up
.
On today's show, we're going tobe talking about the most
on-time airlines and airports, abase camp in Iceland and tall
ship sailing on Star Clippers.
That's just a little bit ofwhat we'll be talking about this
week on the Inside Travel Talkpodcast and radio show, let's go
(00:22):
.
The Inside Travel Talk podcastand radio show presented by go.
The Inside Travel Talk podcastand radio show presented by
BluePlanetVacations.
com contains travel deals,promotions and offers that may
be time sensitive.
All offers and information wereaccurate when the show aired.
Travel deals and offers changeconstantly and are capacity
controlled and subject to changewithout notice.
Show Voice (00:49):
Capacity controlled and subject to change without
notice.
Explore your world.
It's the Inside Travel Talkpodcast and radio show presented
by BluePlanetVacations.
com.
Call or text the show now801-649-3700, 801-649-3700.
And check out the podcast atInsideTravelTalk.
com.
And now here are your hosts,Patrick Wiscombe and Mark Faldmo
(01:12):
.
Patrick Wiscombe (01:24):
Serving up the world to our radio audience and
podcast listeners around theworld.
You are listening to the InsideTravel Talk podcast and radio
show.
Hello there, my name is PatrickWiscombe alongside Mark Faldmo.
My name is Patrick Wiscombealongside Mark Faldmo Coming up
(01:45):
on this edition of the show.
We'll be talking about the moston-time airlines and airports
setting up base camp in Icelandand we'll be talking about
sailing on Star Clippers.
If you don't know what aclipper ship is, you're going to
want to stay tuned because Markhas some terrific offers for
listeners this week.
Want to stay tuned because Markhas some terrific offers for
(02:08):
listeners this week.
Thank you for taking the timeto stop and listen, and the
entire purpose of our radio showand podcast is to help you plan
and book your next vacation, orjust simply give you ideas of
where you want to vacation next,and we are presented by Mark's
company, blueplanetvacations.
com.
You, my friend, are headed to Iwant to say Bermuda here in.
(02:28):
Is it this upcoming week?
I think you are.
Mark Faldmo (02:31):
Close, I'm going to Bahamas.
I'll start with a, B.
So yeah, going to the Bahamasfor a meeting.
So next week I'll be in Nassau,Bahamas.
Patrick Wiscombe (02:42):
Well, that sounds even more delightful.
Mark Faldmo (02:43):
It'll be a lot warmer there than it is here.
Patrick Wiscombe (02:47):
It has been pretty cold.
Next week's show, which will bethe what the 18th, I think.
Ad Voice (02:52):
So you'll be doing it from Nassau.
Patrick Wiscombe (02:54):
Do you know where you're going to be staying
down there?
Mark Faldmo (02:56):
Yeah, I'll be staying at a Sandals Resort in
Nassau, Bahamas.
I'm looking forward to it.
I've only stayed at a Sandalsresort once, so I'm looking
forward to the second time.
Patrick Wiscombe (03:06):
We'll talk about Sandals.
Next week, as you arebroadcasting live.
Coming up in this segment,we'll be talking about the
destination of the week, whichis Iceland.
But let's first get to thetravel news headlines.
Let's give listeners the moston-time airlines and airports of
2024.
How did Salt Lake do?
Mark Faldmo (03:27):
As far as airports go, our airport here in Salt
Lake City ranked fourth in theworld for on-time performance.
Patrick Wiscombe (03:35):
Oh, in the world.
Mark Faldmo (03:37):
Yeah, 83.8% of all flights departed on time.
On time is departing within 15minutes of the scheduled
departure time.
That's awesome.
Well done, Salt Lake.
Seriously, it was the onlyairport in North America to do
that, so it ranked fourth.
And there were three otherairports ahead of Salt Lake,
(03:57):
which was Riyadh and SaudiArabia, Lima, Peru and Mexico
City.
The ones ahead of Salt Lake ohwow, and we do it.
The ones ahead of Salt Lake ohwow, and we do it.
In the snow folks.
Yes, Before the new airportopened, Salt Lake could have
never got that because of howit's configured.
It's really configured to bepretty streamlined.
Patrick Wiscombe (04:16):
I will say that the Salt Lake Airport is
not only visually beautiful,it's efficient, for sure.
Mark Faldmo (04:22):
It is.
There are some places you haveto walk quite a while, but with
the new tunnel that alleviatedthat a little bit.
Let's talk about the airlines.
Let's do the top two airlines.
Aeromexico was the best at86.7% on time arrival, followed
by Saudi Arabian Airlines 86.35.
(04:43):
Saudi Arabian Airlines 86.35.
Delta came in third at 83.4%,which is very interesting
because, if you recall earlier,last summer they had the
CrowdStrike issue where they hadmassive cancellations and
delays.
For Delta to come in the topthree with that, that's pretty
good.
Patrick Wiscombe (05:03):
United is going to launch a Denver to Rome
or Rome to Denver service.
I thought that was interesting.
Mark Faldmo (05:09):
This is a seasonal service.
It'll run May 1st to September24th and be flown on a 787
Dreamliner, and United, as we'vetalked about in previous
episodes, is really expandingtheir network to Europe.
This is only a seasonal routeand Italy is a pretty popular
destination.
This should help in lowerprices to Italy.
Patrick Wiscombe (05:32):
A big travel trend in 2025 is called
noctourism, or nocturnal tourism.
Mark Faldmo (05:38):
Yeah, there was a study done out to 27,000
travelers.
One of the higher categoriesthat people had interested in
was doing activities on vacationat nighttime.
We've talked about in the pastthe Northern Lights.
There was a big increase inrequests for that last year and
this year it's expected toincrease 72%.
But there's also interest instargazing, which I remember.
(06:04):
One time I was on a cruise outin the middle of the Atlantic
Ocean and they had an astronomeron board and he had a
stargazing thing at midnight outin the middle of the dark ocean
.
Patrick Wiscombe (06:17):
How was that.
Mark Faldmo (06:18):
That was amazing.
To see the night sky wherethere's no light pollution is
amazing.
Norway, Iceland, Finland youget that.
In fact, we'll talk a littlebit about that in our
destination of the week, whichis Iceland.
But other things that peopleare interested in night dives on
the Great Barrier Reef inAustralia or in the Red Sea, see
(06:45):
and there's also safaricompanies that are starting to
offer nighttime game driveswhere you go out and see the
nocturnal animals and differentexperiences at night that you
can see on safari.
Patrick Wiscombe (06:52):
I'm thinking that that would almost be a
completely different experience,because some animals aren't
even out during the day, but atnight.
That's when they come to life.
Mark Faldmo (07:00):
I know we did kind of a later evening when I did a
safari and the animals were alldifferent compared to the day.
Patrick Wiscombe (07:08):
Were you nervous when you did that?
Mark Faldmo (07:10):
No, no, you're in a vehicle that is pretty sturdy
and the guides are good at whatthey do.
Keep you safe.
Patrick Wiscombe (07:22):
They're sturdy .
They're reasonably safe.
Yeah, keep you safe.
They're sturdy.
They're reasonably safe, yeah,all right.
So while you were talking aboutstargazing with the astronomer
and you were talking aboutIceland and the northern lights,
that's the perfect segue intoour destination of the week,
which is Iceland.
You have been there?
How many times?
Mark Faldmo (07:41):
I've been to Iceland three times.
It's a place that I love.
I have family history that'sthere.
As we talked about last week,I've got a lot of Scandinavian
family history.
So Norway and Iceland is wheremost of my family's from.
So I love Iceland.
I would go back there any timeof the year, even in the middle
of the winter.
Patrick Wiscombe (08:00):
Oh, so it was that kind of fun.
Mark Faldmo (08:03):
Yeah, it's amazing.
If you're looking for things todo in the nighttime, winter is
a great place in Iceland to dothose.
Patrick Wiscombe (08:10):
Well, let's talk about this base camp idea
in Iceland.
Mark Faldmo (08:14):
There are really three ways that you can see
Iceland.
One is just use Reykjavik, thecapital city, as a base camp.
If you're going to do that, youcould see everything in that
area in five to seven days.
You could stay longer if youwanted, but if you wanted to
just use that as a base camp andgo out and do the different
(08:35):
things, you can do that.
Another way you can see Icelandis Drive the Ring Road, and
this is the road that goes allthe way around Iceland and you
need seven to 10 days to do that.
There are some prettyinteresting itineraries you can
see driving the Ring Road.
The last way to see Iceland isby cruise ship.
(08:56):
There are some cruises that dothe circumference of Iceland or
at least have a few stops inIceland.
Those are the three ways thatyou can do Iceland.
I like the base camp ideaspending a few days in Reykjavik
five to seven days and goingout and seeing what you can see
from there.
Have you done a cruise?
Yeah, I've done two cruisesthat included Iceland as ports.
Patrick Wiscombe (09:20):
Was it an Iceland only, or was it a
Iceland?
Reykjavik and British Islestour.
Mark Faldmo (09:26):
The one I did was Iceland and British Isles, oh
wow.
And the other one I did, wecalled it Path of the Vikings.
So it was British Isles,Iceland and then Canada.
We did so.
We sailed from London to NewYork and stopped for a day in
Iceland.
Patrick Wiscombe (09:44):
What cruise line did you do that one on?
Mark Faldmo (09:45):
All the cruises were on Norwegian cruise line
that I've done.
That included Iceland.
Patrick Wiscombe (09:50):
So you probably went on the Prima, then
the ship.
Mark Faldmo (09:53):
I was lucky enough to be on the inaugural, the
naming where they named thecruise ship, in Reykjavik, and
then we did a Norway and BritishIsles cruise.
Patrick Wiscombe (10:02):
Oh man, that is a good itinerary.
Yeah, when is the best time togo to Iceland?
Mark Faldmo (10:08):
The best time to go to Iceland is between May and
September.
May and September are going tohave the least amount of crowds.
It'll get a little bit morecrowded as you go into the
summer but weather-wise that'sthe best time to go May and
September.
But if you're looking to go seethe Northern Lights it's the
exact opposite.
It's October through March besttime to see the Northern Lights
(10:31):
.
Patrick Wiscombe (10:31):
That was a spectacular.
It was absolutely breathtaking.
Mark Faldmo (10:35):
The Northern Lights are amazing, and the further
north you get, especially up inIceland or even on the north
side of the island, amazingNorthern Lights.
Patrick Wiscombe (10:44):
What are some of the things that you should do
while you're there?
Mark Faldmo (10:46):
Well, I think everyone should take a Golden
Circle tour.
This is a tour, it's a day tripfrom Reykjavik.
You go around and you seegeysers waterfalls One of the
most intriguing places that yousee there is you're actually
standing on the fault line thatdivides North American plate and
(11:07):
the European plate, so you canstand in Europe and North
America at the same time.
There's a big valley wherethere's some smaller cliffs,
where the land has pulled apart,and so you can walk right down
the fault line beyond Europe andNorth America at the same time
so isn't that the, uh, the trailthat you were on, that you had
pictures of kind of goingbetween, uh, I won't say, two
(11:30):
mountains, it was more hill liketwo, two cliffs and the cliffs
are like 50 feet.
They're not, they're not hugecliffs.
Patrick Wiscombe (11:38):
Okay, yes, that was it.
That was pretty cool to see youdo that.
It was in the, if memory serves.
It was kind of a walkway, butit had ropes too, a little bit
of an incline or decline.
Mark Faldmo (11:49):
Yeah, it was a paved pathway.
Patrick Wiscombe (11:51):
Yeah.
Mark Faldmo (11:51):
They have a museum there that kind of explains
everything.
That is my favorite thing to do, you know going seeing the
geysers.
If you've been to Yellowstone,it's very similar to Yellowstone
, but a little bit differentsetting there in Iceland.
What the Yellowstone, but alittle bit different setting
there in Iceland.
What else should we do there?
Skagafoss Waterfall I don'tknow if I'm saying that right.
Like we said last week, Ishould learn to pronounce these
(12:16):
things.
Icelandic and Norwegian arehard languages.
So Skagafoss Waterfall it's ahuge waterfall.
If you Google it, the picturesof it are quite amazing.
Another thing that I thinkeveryone should do is go to Blue
Lagoon, which is a hot spring.
It's a little touristy but it'sworth going.
It is back open as of December15th we talked about last fall.
Blue Lagoon closed oh, that'sright Because of the volcanic
(12:39):
eruption and they got lava ranthrough their parking lot.
So they've either built a newparking lot or figured out a way
to get people to Blue Lagoon.
And then the next thing is towalk or just experience a
glacier.
In Iceland From Reykjavik thereare a couple that you can get
to fairly easily.
I've seen tours where you cansnowmobile.
(13:02):
You can do different things onthe glaciers, I think, kind of a
beautiful experience.
I mean, just seeing the majestyof a glacier from a distance is
amazing.
Being that close and personalwould also be pretty amazing.
Patrick Wiscombe (13:16):
Well, you've sold me.
I think you just have my creditcard on file at this point.
Mark Faldmo (13:20):
Yep, we'll get you to Iceland.
Patrick Wiscombe (13:23):
Yeah, I need to do that.
If you have desires to go toIceland, call Mark during the
break 888-718-7717.
888-718-7717.
And we'll also post this onblueplanetvacations.
com.
Coming up in the next segment,we've got the hot travel deal of
(13:47):
the week.
Delta Vacations has a promotionwhere you can save $200 off to
Mexico and the Caribbean.
That is next when the InsideTravel Talk podcast and radio
show continues.
Alongside Mark Faldmo, my nameis Patrick Wiscombe.
Thank you, Really.
Thank you so much for allowingus to be part of your weekend.
We will be right back.
Show Voice (14:12):
Taking you to destinations around the world.
The Inside Travel Talk podcastand radio show is presented by
BluePlanetVacations.
com, America's best traveladvisors.
Call or text the show now801-649-3700, 801-649-3700.
Thanks for listening.
(14:33):
We'll be right back.
Ad Voice (14:43):
Inside Travel Talk is brought to you by Travelex
Insurance Services.
Their travel insurance planscan help protect you and your
vacation.
Travelex is known for theiraward-winning customer service
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Contact Blue Planet Vacationsat 888-718-7717 or
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Show Voice (15:11):
Now back to the Inside Travel Talk podcast and
radio show presented byblueplanetvacations.
com, America's best traveladvisors.
Call or text the show right now801-649-3700, 801-649-3700.
And check out the podcast atInsideTravelTalk.
com.
Patrick Wiscombe (15:36):
Here's Patrick Wiscombe and Mark Faldmo
Broadcasting live from Salt LakeCity, Utah.
You are listening to the InsideTravel Talk podcast and radio
show.
Alongside my good friend, markFaldmo, my name is Patrick
Wiscombe.
Thank you so much for allowingus to be part of your weekend.
(15:58):
As we talk travel, mark and Ilove to travel, love to travel
and love to share our adventureswith our listeners, and the
entire purpose of this show isto help you plan and book your
next vacation or just give youideas of where to go on vacation
.
And since it is cold outside,we thought we'd talk about
(16:23):
Mexico and the Caribbean, andDelta Vacations is allowing our
listeners to save up to $200 offon a Mexico and or a Caribbean
vacation.
We'll get to that here in justa second.
But let's get to the travelnews headlines.
I saw this story that Italyleads global travel destinations
(16:45):
for this past year, 2024 andinto 2025, according to this
study.
Mark Faldmo (16:52):
Yeah, so this was a study of tour operators and it
was judging demand for theirtours.
This pretty much mirrors otherstudies that I've seen of just
people where they want to travel.
So Italy, for 2025, is the mostrequested single destination,
followed by Portugal, and Greecewas third on that list.
(17:15):
In fact, Europe makes up about55% of all of this demand.
Patrick Wiscombe (17:20):
Is it my imagination, or is Italy
starting to kind of have aresurgence in tourism?
Mark Faldmo (17:26):
or is this just a post-COVID thing, or yes, yes,
you know, Italy post-COVID hasbeen probably the most requested
that I've had and I've seenreports on this.
Italy continues to be thestrongest in demand country to
visit in all of Europe.
Patrick Wiscombe (17:43):
Wow, any particular destination, Rome, or
just the whole thing?
Mark Faldmo (17:48):
Just Italy in general.
One of these days we'll have togo over I think we did this
early, early on but go over mypreferred Italy itinerary that I
like to do.
Patrick Wiscombe (18:00):
Belize is going to require new travel
authorizations from Americansstarting this year, 2025.
We're sure seeing a surge ofthese travel authorization forms
.
Mark Faldmo (18:11):
Yeah, we're seeing a lot of those come in, although
this one is they want to gopaperless.
Before, the flight attendantswould hand out a form that you
had to fill out on the planebefore you landed and you'd give
it to the immigration.
So they are just moving thisauthorization form, they're
moving an electronic, which Ilike.
I'd rather have the electronicform have it done.
(18:33):
One of the biggest gripes I hadis I never had access to a pen
to fill that out.
And then you're asking all thepassengers around you.
You have a pen.
The flight attendants alwayssaid we don't have enough pens
for everybody, so share withyour neighbor.
I like the fact that this iselectronic.
Patrick Wiscombe (18:53):
If you are a Disneyland fan, they are
offering a promotion forlisteners right now.
What are the details on thatpromotion?
Mark Faldmo (19:02):
This is for Disneyland California specific.
Last week we talked about WaltDisney World offer and we talked
about a Disney cruise offer,both which are still valid.
If you want information on that, you can go to
blueplanetvacations.
com to see what those are.
But this is Disneyland specificand this is book three nights,
(19:22):
receive a fourth night free at aGood Neighbor Hotel.
Patrick Wiscombe (19:26):
The Good Neighbor Hotel that I like
because it's close.
It's not the only one.
They actually have a few dozenhotels was the Fairfield, across
the street from Disneyland Parkon the east side, that
Fairfield.
Mark Faldmo (19:39):
I've stayed at that one quite a bit, One that I
used to use years ago buthaven't as much, but is the Best
Western Raffles in the streets,which is also in a pretty good
location.
So those are the two that I'drecommend.
There are about 20 goodneighbor hotels on the list, but
if you want to be withinwalking distance or you just
(20:03):
basically walk across the street, that Fairfield Inn is a great
option.
When I was there like six yearsago, which was the last time I
was there, I was surprised therewas still a Tony Roma's there.
Oh, I didn't know that Right bythat Fairfield.
Ad Voice (20:16):
Yeah, okay.
Mark Faldmo (20:17):
It probably is not there now, but I was surprised
to see that I always liked TonyRoma's.
Mimi's was in that parking lotas well Mimi's was also in the
parking lot yeah, so so it it'slocated pretty well to well one
the main gate of Disneyland,which is the purpose of your
trip.
And then there are some foodoptions around there where you
(20:38):
don't have to spend Disneyprices to eat.
You have to have to spendCalifornia prices but not Disney
prices.
Patrick Wiscombe (20:46):
It's only slightly less offensive.
Yes, yeah, all right, let's getto the hot travel deal of the
week, which is always in thesecond segment of the show, and
we're talking about going toMexico and the Caribbean.
And what deal do we have forlisteners this week On the show
sheet?
Mark Faldmo (21:03):
I mistyped it a little bit.
It's actually Hawaii, Mexicoand the Caribbean.
Patrick Wiscombe (21:08):
Oh well, that's even better.
Mark Faldmo (21:09):
Yeah, so this is for all, basically warm weather
destinations.
So this is save up to $200 offAgain Mexico, Hawaii and the
Caribbean and it's a tiereddiscount, so that discount
starts at $25 and goes up to$200, based on what you spend.
Looking at the average cost, isthat per person, that is per
(21:30):
package, oh, per package, sothat is per package.
And looking at the average costof what my customers have paid,
that's going to be somewherebetween the $75 and $125 off
booking there.
Patrick Wiscombe (21:43):
All three destinations Hawaii, Mexico and
the Caribbean.
You just can't go wrong period.
Let me toss you a curveball.
This is courtesy of DeltaVacations, where you save up to
$200 off to Hawaii, Mexico andthe Caribbean.
Do you have to fly on Delta toget to any of those locations,
or can you fly a differentairline and then get this Delta
(22:06):
vacations offer?
Mark Faldmo (22:08):
Yes and no.
So it is Delta Airlines.
So if you include the flight inthis, you do have to fly on
Delta Airlines or one of itspartners.
So you could use Aeromexico toMexico and still get this.
You could do a land only andget this, but I wouldn't
recommend that.
You'll get a better savings ifyou bundle it with the air and
(22:31):
the hotel.
But there is one bonus, becausethis is Delta vacations and we
talked about this a few weeksago.
Delta has changed their programwhere now you're going to get
those medallion qualifying mileson the full package price.
So, like Patrick, if you wereto book a $4,000 package to
(22:54):
Hawaii, you would get 4,000medallion qualifying miles.
That is significant, or dollarsmedallion, qualifying dollars,
as they say.
That would put youautomatically at silver
medallion status.
Patrick Wiscombe (23:07):
Because then it gets you to the level that
you need to to continuequalifying for To continue to
qualify.
Yeah.
Mark Faldmo (23:12):
Okay, and you know that would be halfway to gold.
You know I've seen people.
I actually do have a customerthat was booked a pretty
extensive trip to the West CoastIn the US.
They're doing several days, sothat person is getting gold
status just for booking the trip.
That's nice if you're lookingfor status or want to at least
(23:34):
have status, it'll help you getthere.
Patrick Wiscombe (23:35):
Is it any location in Mexico?
Mark Faldmo (23:38):
It's anywhere that Delta Airlines or Aeromexico
flies, okay, well, that's anextensive network, so yeah, and
then again anywhere in theCaribbean, anywhere in Hawaii uh
, the delta flies.
Patrick Wiscombe (23:50):
It's cold just just go, just book it.
Call mark 888-718-7717.
888-718-7717 to book yourvacation to Hawaii, Mexico or
the Caribbean.
Nikki and I were just there in.
When was it?
Was that June?
Yeah, I think it was theCaribbean.
(24:12):
Yep, Awesome, Absolutelyamazing.
Call Mark.
Here's the phone number onemore time 888-718-7717.
And you can also check outblueplanetvacations.
com.
When we come back, the final 30minutes of the show, we've got
the infamous Just Cruisingsegment and we are talking about
(24:33):
tall ships.
We'll give you the details onthat when the Inside Travel Talk
podcast and radio showcontinues Alongside Mark Faldmo,
my name is Patrick Wiscombe.
Thank you so much for allowingus to be part of your Saturday
and Sunday.
We will be right back.
Show Voice (24:53):
You're listening to the Inside Travel Talk podcast
and radio show with PatrickWiscombe and Mark Faldmo,
presented by BluePlanetVacations.
com America's best traveladvisors.
Call or text the show now801-649-3700.
That's 801-649-3700.
And check out the podcast atInsideTravelTalk.
(25:15):
com.
We'll be right back.
Ad Voice (25:28):
This segment of Inside Travel Talk is sponsored by El
Dorado Spa Resorts.
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resort, contact Blue PlanetVacations at 888-718-7717 or
(25:53):
blueplanetvacations.
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Patrick Wiscombe (25:55):
Welcome back to the Inside Travel Talk
podcast and radio show Coming up.
In the next 30 minutes, markand I will be talking about
cruising on a Clipper ship,which he has done A Virgin
Voyages annual cruise pass Kindof like that idea, an annual
cruise pass and Princess hasunveiled their 2026-2027 West
(26:17):
Coast sailing schedule.
We'll talk about why they'rereleasing it so early.
Let's get back to the show.
The Inside Travel Talk podcastand radio show presented by
BluePlanetVacations.
com contains travel deals,promotions and offers that may
be time sensitive.
All offers and information wereaccurate when the show aired.
Travel deals and offers changeconstantly and are capacity
(26:40):
controlled and subject to changewithout notice.
Show Voice (26:50):
This is the Inside Travel Talk podcast and radio
show presented byBluePlanetVacations.
com, America's best traveladvisors.
Call or text the show right now801-649-3700, 801-649-3700.
And now here are your hostsPatrick.
Patrick Wiscombe (27:15):
Wiscombe and Mark Faldmo, all aboard for the
infamous Just Cruising segment.
My name is Patrick Wiscombe,alongside Mark Faldmo.
Thank you for joining us forthe next 30 minutes as we talk
about travel and in this segmentit's only about cruising and we
(27:40):
will take your phone calls.
If you want to text yourtravel-related questions while
we're here in the studio, pleasedo so.
The text number is 801-649-3700.
801-649-3700.
And Mark and I are presented byhis company called
(28:00):
BluePlanetVacations.
com, and just thank you forallowing us to be part of your
weekend, whatever you're doing.
All right, mark, it is time toget to the uh cruise deal of the
week here in just a second.
How many times have you sailedon star clippers, the tall ships
(28:21):
?
I've sailed once on starclippers and your favorite
memory from that was, I'm gonnasay, lane in the uh.
What do they call it?
The, not the ropes, not thecanopy either the mesh that's
out in front of the ship.
Mark Faldmo (28:36):
Thank you, yes, I enjoyed that.
I actually think my favoritespot was the passengers go into
kind of a lottery and theychoose who gets to go out on a
lifeboat as they're raising thesails.
So you get to see raising thesails from outside of the ship.
That was probably my favoriteexperience uh, seeing and
(28:59):
experiencing that.
Patrick Wiscombe (29:00):
And that was a lottery Really.
That was, yeah, interestingyeah.
Mark Faldmo (29:03):
Cause the life was oh interesting, yeah, because
the lifeboat only holds I don'tknow 100 people and there's a
couple hundred on the cruiseship.
Patrick Wiscombe (29:10):
Oh, that's right yeah because the crowds
are so much smaller.
Yeah, okay, before we get tothe Star Clippers deal or the
cruise deal of the week aboutStar Clippers, let's get to the
cruise news headlines.
I was happy to see thatPrincess Cruises has unveiled
their 2026-2027 West Coastsailing schedule.
(29:32):
That was great, but thequestion I have for you is why
is Princess unveiling theirsailing schedule so early?
Mark Faldmo (29:40):
I mean, that's one to two years from now, yeah,
that's, two years from now, iswhen most of this starts.
And the reason why is becauseone, they need a little bit lead
time to start selling some ofthis, and two, people are
booking their vacations that farin advance now, so there is a
huge demand.
And then, as far as thecustomer perspective, if you
(30:03):
book now you'll get the bestprice Typically cruise lines,
with a few exceptions, but everyfew months they increase the
price.
So if you're waiting to bookthis five months in advance,
it'll probably cost you $150,$200 more per person than it
would have if you would havebooked it when the cruise first
came out.
(30:23):
If you're looking for cruisedeals, look for at least a year
and a half in advance.
Patrick Wiscombe (30:29):
How do you find out about things in advance
?
Do you just have to go to eachone of the cruise lines and
basically sign up for theiremail?
Mark Faldmo (30:36):
Yeah, you can do that or listen to the show.
I get all of these notices andso you know we've put a few of
these announcements out.
I also do put them out on theHot Deal update.
Oh, that's right that BluePlanet Vacations has.
Patrick Wiscombe (30:51):
Which, by the way, just while we're there, if
you want to just get a summaryof all of the vacations without
being bombarded by all of thecruise lines, and you just want
one email with everything, telllisteners how they can sign up
for your email and where to go.
Mark Faldmo (31:06):
Yeah, so you can go to blueplanetvacations.
com and if you're a first timevisitor, a form will pop up to
register for our email list, oryou can click on hot deal update
in the navigation and that'lltake you to a page where you can
fill out your information andget on our list.
Patrick Wiscombe (31:22):
What are some of the destinations for the West
Coast sailing season?
So?
Mark Faldmo (31:26):
there's two aspects here.
One is they are moving the StarPrincess, which is their new
ship, to the West Coast.
We've noticed this trend in thelast few years where we are
getting newer ships on the WestCoast.
Ten years ago it would be theoldest, the worst ships sailing
the Mexican Riviera, forinstance, and now we're getting
(31:49):
more and more new ships becausethey are moving those ships
eventually into Alaska, wherethey do want their new ships for
Alaska.
And so part of this 2026 and2027 West Coast season, it
features 69 voyages across 26destinations departing from Los
Angeles, san Francisco andVancouver my perception was that
(32:11):
all the new ships went to theeast coast, went to Bahamas,
went to Caribbean.
Patrick Wiscombe (32:14):
I'm glad to see that this trend is starting
to change, because those shipswere kind of old.
Mark Faldmo (32:20):
Yeah, so they were we are getting the newer ships,
which I really like, yeah, andand so in this, from Los Angeles
, the star princess will beoffering seven-day Mexican
Riviera cruises, and then thediscovery princess, which is
also one of the newer ships,will be sailing seven-day
Mexican Riviera cruises, and theemerald princess will be
(32:44):
offering 16-day round-tripHawaiian island cruises.
So those will either leave fromit doesn't say here, but it's
either Los Angeles, sanFrancisco, so you only have to
fly to the West Coast and youget a 16-day Hawaiian island
cruise.
And it also will offer 10-dayBaja and Sea of Cortez sailings,
which I think is fantastic10-day Baja and Sea of Cortez
sailings which I think isfantastic.
(33:04):
I love sailing in the Sea ofCortez.
Patrick Wiscombe (33:07):
Oh, yes, okay, so they are really starting to
up their game, then that wouldsuggest that cruising is now
becoming more popular than ever.
Mark Faldmo (33:14):
Yes, Wow.
And then one itinerary that I'mexcited that they're bringing
back is a 32-day cruise roundtrip South Pacific and Hawaii
cruise.
Ad Voice (33:25):
So, Italy.
Mark Faldmo (33:26):
from Los Angeles, san Francisco goes to the
Hawaiian islands, usually Fiji,Tahiti ends back in on the West
coast, so that's a prettyexciting itinerary.
Patrick Wiscombe (33:37):
Yeah, that's a good one.
I'm glad to see that Princessis really upping their game,
updating their ships, new ships,west coast.
This has needed to happen for along time.
Here's an idea that I can getbehind the annual cruise pass.
Now, obviously it's going tocost some money, but the annual
cruise pass of just basicallyjumping on a ship in this
particular case it's VirginVoyages what are the details and
(33:59):
how much does it cost to getthe Virgin Voyages annual cruise
pass?
Mark Faldmo (34:03):
What Virgin has found is they have remote
workers that are working onboard cruise ship.
So they decided to offer thisannual pass for 2025.
It's available for sale nowthrough April, and you got to
move quick then.
Yes, you do.
This is good on any of theirsailings in the Caribbean, in
(34:24):
Europe, any of their worldcruises.
So if you buy this annual pass,you only have to pay the
government, taxes and fees tosail In a balcony cabin, you get
priority boarding, free laundryservice, a dedicated concierge
for every voyage you're on,unlimited premium access and
$100 bar tab per voyage.
(34:45):
The price tag of this is fairlyhefty it's $120,000.
But if you sail half the year,that'll easily pay for itself.
If you're a remote worker,that's your lodging, all of your
food, your internet, everythingyou would need to work.
Or if you're just an avidcruiser, traveler, this is a
(35:05):
great way to do that.
You know especially where it'svalid on any voyage their Europe
voyages, their Mediterraneanvoyages, Caribbean, anywhere
they sail in the world, andthey'll be sailing not this
coming season but the followingseason in Alaska.
So now you can even do westcoast us on virgin voyages.
Patrick Wiscombe (35:26):
Do any other ships Princess, MSC, royal
Caribbean do they offer annualpasses, or is this kind of a new
idea?
Mark Faldmo (35:34):
I've heard of it offered before, but I've not
seen it offered in a while and Icould have just missed the
story.
This is the first one wherethey've really gone out and
published it.
Patrick Wiscombe (35:44):
Let's get to the cruise deal of the week,
which is the Star Clippers deal.
Let's let our listeners knowwhat the deal is and where they
can sail.
Yeah.
Mark Faldmo (35:53):
So Star Clippers is one of the most enjoyable
experiences you can have whencruising.
Now, it's a small ship they'reeither a three to five masted
ship, depending on which ship oftheirs you go on but it is just
an amazing experience and theyhave up to $500 per cabin
airfare credit and a beveragecredit, and this is on top of
(36:18):
right.
Now they have a 65% off thebrochure rate cruise.
You can get an air credit and abeverage credit on top of that.
Now, how this works is three tosix day cruises get $150 per
person air credit, seven to nineday cruises get a $200 per
person air credit, and 10 plusdays get a $250 per person
(36:39):
airfare credit.
Patrick Wiscombe (36:40):
Generally speaking, don't they sail out of
the East?
Mark Faldmo (36:42):
Coast.
They do Caribbean sailings,they do Central America sailings
and they sail in theMediterranean, particularly
around Greece is where a lot oftheir sailings are.
Now I chose two sailings tokind of highlight here.
One that just fascinates me isRound Trip Athens.
It does Greek Isles.
(37:05):
That goes to Spetses, Mykonos,Armagos, Patmos and Kusadasi,
where you can get to Ephesus inTurkey and then back to Athens.
To do this on a sailing ship, Ithink would be amazing and to
get to those Greek islands.
Some of those are not on thebig ship, so you get to go to
(37:25):
these smaller, more remote ports.
Patrick Wiscombe (37:29):
What was the name of the city where you had
Coke and olives on that rooftop?
Mark Faldmo (37:34):
That was in Santorini, oh, Santorini, which
wasn't on this sailing.
Patrick Wiscombe (37:38):
Okay.
Mark Faldmo (37:39):
They do have sailings that do that.
One thing about these ships isthey don't do your typical round
trip, even though what I justgave you is a round trip.
But this cruise ship goesbasically between Venice and
Istanbul and you buy segments ofthat and then they have a
couple of these round tripAthens pancaked in between that,
(37:59):
so you get some really uniqueitineraries on this.
Patrick Wiscombe (38:04):
How much is the Eastern Mediterranean
itinerary, generally speaking so?
Mark Faldmo (38:08):
that one starts at $2,300 per person.
And what?
Patrick Wiscombe (38:13):
about Central.
Mark Faldmo (38:14):
America and then Central America.
These are usually either roundtrip Costa Rica or they go
between Costa Rica and,basically, panama City.
I chose a round trip Costa Ricaone because then you can go
spend a few days and go toArenal Volcano one of my
favorite spots on that but itgoes to Tortuga Island, goes to
(38:38):
Capos, which is where ManuelAntonio is.
We've talked about ManuelAntonio a few times on this show
.
Goes to other places that I'venot been, but I've been reading
about them and they lookfantastic.
Goes to Golfito, goes to CobiaNational Park in Panama and goes
to Marine National Park inPanama.
All of these are on the WestCoast of Panama and Costa Rica
(39:02):
and that one starts at $1870 perperson for a seven-day cruise
Again these are probably some ofthe most unique travel
experiences.
Patrick Wiscombe (39:13):
You can have One of our contacts at Star
Clippers.
Her name is Beth and I thinkshe's retired.
Is that right, Mark?
That is, she's recently retired.
Good for her.
One of the most effective linesthat she ever used on me was
Patrick, it is so quiet, youdon't hear the rumble.
You don't hear the rumble, youdon't hear the rattle of the
engine.
It's just quiet becauseeverything's under wind power.
(39:33):
Now they do have engines on theship, just in case.
But she goes.
It is just different, and wasthat your experience as well?
Mark Faldmo (39:42):
Yeah, when you're truly sailing, it is a different
experience.
Go up on deck watch the oceango by.
One thing that I foundfascinating on Star Clippers is
the bridge it's just right there.
You just go stand behind themon the bridge as they're sailing
the ship and telling what allthe sailors to do with the sails
and all of that.
(40:02):
It's pretty fascinating becauseit's not a normal bridge like
you would see on a big cruiseship.
It's just right there on deck.
Patrick Wiscombe (40:10):
So if you're looking for something unique,
you've absolutely found thesolution to the problem that
you've been trying to find asolution for Star Clippers.
Call Mark in his office, justget the conversation rolling.
There's no obligation, justcall him.
Just get the conversationrolling.
There's no obligation.
Just call them.
(40:31):
888-718-7717.
888-718-7717.
And Air Canada is removing freecarry-on luggage for basic fare
(40:52):
.
Uh-oh, we're also going to talkabout how to avoid being
pickpocketed.
That is next when the InsideTravel Talk podcast or radio
show continues.
Alongside Mark Faldmo, my nameis Patrick Wiscombe.
Thank you so much for allowingus to be part of your Saturday
and Sunday.
We will be right back.
Show Voice (41:15):
Explore your world.
You're listening to the InsideTravel Talk podcast and radio
show with Patrick Wiscombe andMark Faldmo.
Call or text the show now801-649-3700.
That's 801-649-3700.
And check out the podcast atInsideTravelTalk.
com.
We'll be right back.
Ad Voice (41:44):
Inside Travel Talk is brought to you by Anna.
Waterways, from castles andcapitals to vistas and villages
visit some of Europe's mostremarkable sites and cities To
set out on your own river cruisejourney.
Contact Blue Planet Vacationsat 888-718-7717 or
blueplanetvacations.
com.
Show Voice (42:20):
This is the Inside Travel Talk podcast and radio
show with Patrick Wiscombe andMark Faldmo, presented by
BluePlanetVacations.
com America's best traveladvisors.
Call the show right now801-649-3700, 801-649-3700.
801-649-3700.
And now your hosts, PatrickWiscombe and Mark Faldmo.
Patrick Wiscombe (42:39):
Broadcasting live from the Wiscombe-Faldmo
Radio Studios right here in SaltLake City Radio Studios.
Right here in Salt Lake City,you are listening to the Inside
Travel Talk podcast and radioshow for January 11th and 12th.
Thank you so much for allowingus to be part of your weekend
(42:59):
and if you want to listen tothis show again tomorrow meaning
Sunday we're on all radiostations starting at 11 o'clock
Mountain Time and you can alsostream the show on 860 KKAT.
And you can also listen to theshow again by just simply going
(43:21):
to InsideTravelTalk.
com InsideTravelTalk.
com and you can just stream theshow on the website.
But if you're a podcaster,we're on all of the major
podcast platforms.
Just do a search for InsideTravel Talk and you will find me
and Mark.
(43:42):
All right, final segment.
We've got your travel tips.
We're going to recap the deals.
We're going to tell you how toavoid being pickpocketed while
you are on vacation.
But let's do the final segmentof the travel news headlines,
and there was a news story thatthe department of transportation
is finalizing, or finalized,the Washington Reagan route
(44:06):
awards.
I don't even know what that'sabout.
Mark Faldmo (44:08):
Yeah, and a lot of people don't know this, but
Reagan National Airport inWashington DC that is the
closest airport to downtownWashington DC and it is not an
international airport, it's anational airport or a regional
airport.
I did not know that the DOT hasa rule that only flights within
(44:29):
a 1,250 mile perimeter can flyto Reagan National Airport.
Now, a few years ago they madean exemption for a few routes.
Delta got an exemption from SaltLake City, so we are outside of
that limit.
But we do have a nonstop flightto Reagan and there's 20
(44:51):
current flights and they justawarded Alaska Airlines to be
able to fly there from San Diego, American from San Antonio,
delta from Seattle, southwestfrom Las Vegas and United from
San Francisco.
So if I had my choice betweenthe airports Dulles Airport or
Reagan, I would fly into Reaganeven if I had to connect.
(45:13):
It's so much more convenientthan Dulles.
Patrick Wiscombe (45:17):
The way that I was reading this was the
Washington Reagan route awards,meaning you know first place,
second place, third place.
You're talking about thesedifferent cities San Diego, Salt
Lake, San Antonio.
They are awarding theexceptions is the way I just
understood you.
Yes, I thought that they weregoing to be.
(45:39):
You know, hey, you've come infirst place because fantastic
food on board or something, orin the airport.
Air Canada has removed freecarry-on luggage for basic
airfare.
I don't like the trend of this.
I'm starting to see this just alittle bit with some of the
airlines.
Mark Faldmo (45:59):
Yeah, it is, and I love how the airline releases
this to the passengers.
So first I'll go over what thisis.
So they're removing.
You no longer get acomplimentary piece of carry-on
luggage.
You only get a small purse or ahandbag.
Patrick Wiscombe (46:14):
Not even a backpack.
Not even a backpack.
Mark Faldmo (46:17):
So just your small personal item.
This is again only if you arein their basic economy.
It's $35 for carry-on bags.
Patrick Wiscombe (46:29):
Okay, now those numbers seem to be fairly
consistent between the airlines,somewhere between $30 and $50
for each and every carry-on.
Mark Faldmo (46:37):
Yeah, and you know, I love how the airline releases
this.
We've listened to our customersand we're implementing this
because you want us to providethe very lowest fares, but
they're not going to lower theirfare by $35.
They're going to keep it thesame, but make you pay $35
additional.
So, I always love that whenthey term this, as we've
(46:59):
listened to you and we know thisis what you want.
Patrick Wiscombe (47:02):
That is corporate speak, for we need to
raise prices, but we're going toblame it on the passengers.
Yeah, I want to talk to youabout this story.
You had a pickpocketing storyactually two or three so I
wanted to bring this up on theshow of how to avoid being
pickpocketed when you're onvacation or if you're just
(47:23):
traveling the first tip is usecards over cash.
Mark Faldmo (47:27):
If your card gets pickpocketed, you can cancel it.
Patrick Wiscombe (47:31):
Usually on the app.
Now they've made it reallysimple.
Mark Faldmo (47:34):
Yeah, you can freeze it or cancel it pretty
easily and don't carry around alot of cash, and I guess we
should go back.
The very first thing is kind ofknow where you're at.
Know the cities that have a lotof pickpockets.
Know if you're in a touristarea there are probably a lot of
pickpockets around.
Be aware of your surroundings.
(47:55):
Keep money close.
I always keep my money andcredit cards in a money necklace
, so something that hangs aroundmy neck, and I tuck it in
between my shirt so it's noteasy to get at for a
pickpocketer.
I also suggest on that, get anRFID money belt or an RFID
(48:16):
backpack If your passport andcredit cards are in there.
There's technology now wheresomeone can get within a few
feet of you and steal yourcredit cards and your passport
information by standing near toyou.
So get an RFID blocking bag.
Patrick Wiscombe (48:30):
So what I'm hearing you say is keep your
enemies close and your money andpassport closer.
Correct With RFID.
Mark Faldmo (48:38):
With RFID.
Okay, you can buy backpacks andbags that are harder for the
pickpockets to get in Backpackswith lockable zippers,
slash-proof backpacks All ofthis can be found on Amazon.
Dressed down, don't look likean obvious tourist.
I used to walk around with mycamera around my neck and, like
(49:00):
boy, I sure look like a tourist.
So dress down a little bit.
And then one that I've neverthought of before, but I
probably should have, issafeguard your phone.
A lot of people in your walletsyou have.
In the wallet app on your phoneyou have all of your credit
card information.
If your phone was to get stolenand you didn't have your phone
(49:22):
securely locked down, peoplecould just get on and get all of
your credit card information, alot of personal details, from
your phone.
I've even heard people sayclear out your wallets when
you're traveling so there's nopersonal information in them,
just in case something doeshappen to your phone.
And then the last thing is bealert in crowds.
I was with a group in Barcelona.
(49:44):
We got off the subway and, asthe doors were closing, out came
all of our wallets.
So the pickpocketers got ourwallets on the subway, took all
the money out.
They threw them back, luckily,driver's license, credit cards,
everything was still there.
So I put this in the realm of.
These were the nicepickpocketers.
(50:05):
They just took the cash andgave back everything else.
But when you're in a subway ora crowded place, be alert.
The other thing is watch forpeople trying to distract you.
I've told this story before.
I was in Paris by the Arc deTriomphe.
Guy came up to me and just keptasking do you know judo, do you
know judo?
And he was touching me andtrying to show me judo moves,
(50:28):
all while he was distracting meso he could get my wallet.
Luckily, all I had in mypockets was a subway map, so it
was really hard to get back towhere I was going.
But watch for that.
People just doing weird thingslike that bumping into you.
We've all seen that on themovies, where the spy bumps into
someone and pickpockets them.
(50:49):
So that's how it really doeswork.
Patrick Wiscombe (50:51):
That's a genuine skill, not a skill that
I want.
It's impressive that they canpick you that quick.
Mark Faldmo (50:57):
I guess another tip you know, if you're doing some
of those Taurus things, do themwith a guide.
I know every time I'm aroundthe Colosseum in Rome the guide
is always vigilant.
Most guides know who thepickpocketers are and I've had
guides say watch that person,he's a pickpocketer.
I've had them yellpickpocketers off from our group
before.
And so you know that issomething if you're doing.
(51:19):
Some of those tourist sites doit with a guide because they
often know the pickpocketers andthey watch out for the
activities for pickpocketers.
Patrick Wiscombe (51:30):
Well, that's going to do it.
Very, very helpful tips.
Thank you, mark.
If you want to book any of thevacations that we have talked
about during the show, pleasecall Mark in his office,
888-718-7717.
You can listen to the showagain tomorrow morning, Sunday,
(51:54):
at 11 am, right here on thisradio station or whatever radio
station you're listening to, andyou can stream, download and
subscribe to the podcast atInsideTravelTalk.
com, where we are on all of themajor podcast platforms.
Well, it's your turn now.
We've done our job.
Get out and explore the worldwhile you can, because you never
(52:17):
know what curveball's life isgoing to throw at you.
Do yourself a favor.
Live your life deliberately,live your life intentionally,
and thanks for listening.
Have a great week, mark, and Iwill talk to you again next.
Show Voice (52:34):
Saturday.
That's it.
That's the end of the showYou've been listening to the
Inside Travel Talk podcast andradio show with Patrick Wiscombe
and Mark Faldmo, presented byBluePlanetVacations.
com.
Book your adventure right now.
Call 888-718-7717.
That's 888-718-7717.
(52:56):
Thanks for listening.
Have a great week.
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